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The Court of Justice of the European Union (ECJ) ruled on Tuesday that EU member states cannot collect internet and mobile data from their citizens, arguing that forcing internet and telephony operators to randomly transmit or retain data traffic and location is opposite. Community block law, according to cnbc.com.
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The decision came in response to several cases reported by Privacy International and La Quadrature du Net, News.ro reports.
The highest EU legal authority said: “If a member state faces serious threats to national security that prove to be real or foreseeable, that member state may deviate from the obligation to ensure the confidentiality of related data of electronic communications.” .
Even in these emergency scenarios, there are rules to follow. “Such interference with fundamental rights must be accompanied by effective safeguards and must be reviewed by a court of law or an independent administrative authority,” the ECJ explained.
Privacy International and La Quadrature du Net have argued that surveillance practices in the UK, France and Belgium go too far and violate fundamental rights.
“Today’s decision strengthens the rule of law in the EU,” Caroline Wilson Palow, director of Privacy International, said in a statement. “In these difficult times, it serves as a reminder that no government should be above the law. Democratic societies must impose limits and control on the supervisory powers of the police and intelligence services.”
The ECJ decision is the latest in a series of cases attempting to limit the powers of governments to keep their citizens under observation.
In July, the European Union Court of Justice ruled that US national security laws do not protect the confidentiality of EU citizens’ data. The ECJ has restricted the way US companies can transmit European user data to the US state.
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